Answered by Anthony Mancini M.D.
Dr. Mancini received his undergraduate and medical educations at the University of Arizona, and trained in pediatrics, pediatric dermatology, and dermatology at Stanford University. He is currently Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Dermatology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine and Head of the Division of Dermatology at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois.
Dr. Mancini has served as a member of the AAP Executive Committee, Section of Dermatology since 2001. He is a member of the AAP Super CME Planning Group and the AAP Pedia Link Pediatric Dermatology Project Team, and is Secretary-Treasurer of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology. His teaching accomplishments include the Faculty Excellence in Education Award from the Department of Pediatrics at Northwestern, which he has received for the last eight years. Dr. Mancini is a peer reviewer and/or sits on the editorial board for several academic journals, and has published over 75 peer-reviewed articles, abstracts, and book chapters. He is co-author of Hurwitz Clinical Pediatric Dermatology, 3rd edition, and is an associate editor for the comprehensive dermatology textbook Dermatology. His special interests include infectious skin diseases and exanthems of childhood, vascular malformations and hemangiomas, and neonatal skin maturation and skin disorders.
Dr. Mancini is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Dermatology. He and his wife, Nicola, a neonatal intensive care nurse, have three children (Mallory, Christopher, and Mackenzie) and reside in Evanston, Illinois.
Question
My 9-month-old baby has black fly bites on his forehead. The red spots have been there for three weeks, although they don't appear to be bothering him. What can I do to prevent this from happening again?
Answer
Some arthropod bite reactions may persist for weeks and, in some cases, even months. Prevention is important, as the bites may cause pain, itching, and the rare possibility of associated infectious diseases that are at times transmitted by the insects or develop after vigorous scratching. The most effective insect repellents are those containing the chemical N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide, otherwise known as DEET. DEET protects against a broad spectrum of pests, including mosquitoes, fleas, gnats, chiggers, and ticks and is applied to exposed skin (avoiding the mouth or eyes). For children, the DEET concentration (shown on the label) in a repellent should be no greater than 10 percent. While the use of a small amount of DEET-containing insect repellent is probably safe for your son, it should be noted that it is not formally recommended for children under the age of 1 year. It's best to avoid situations that place your son at high risk for receiving bites.
